About the project

From the beginning of this year, Athenian's ninth grade students have examined life’s key questions in their literature classes and the way writers from around the world have attempted to answer them through literature. This assignment is modeled after the popular NPR series, "This I Believe," based on a 1950’s radio program of the same name, in which Americans from all walks of life share the personal philosophies and core values that guide their daily lives. As a culminating literary project, students composed a personal essay addressing one of their own core beliefs and considered how they now, or will in the future, express it in their lives.

We invite you to click on the titles of the essays below to view their "This I Believe" speeches.